Cordon blow! World’s top restaurant beaten by cafe
Diner voted No 1 online... but only No2 in Lakes town
WITH delicacies ranging from black pudding ‘bon bon’ to scallops with a spiced mead veloute, diners lucky enough to get a table at the Old Stamp House are left in no doubt that they have firmly entered the world of fine dining.
Indeed the efforts of Michelin-starred chef-proprietor Ryan Blackburn in scouring Cumbria for the finest local produce have now landed his tiny restaurant the stunning accolade of ‘best in the world’ from TripAdvisor.
But one look at the customer reviews section on the very same website reveals that the 28-cover venue comes in at only No2 in the popular Lake District tourist town. For just down the road is Fresher’s Café, where main meal options include jacket potatoes, quiche lorraine and egg mayonnaise sandwiches.
Billed as ‘the friendliest café in Ambleside’, for barely £6 customers can fill up with a healthy handmade sandwich and a cup of tea – compared with £75 per head plus wine for the dinner tasting menu at the Old Stamp House. Both restaurants were, in their own way, toasting their successes yesterday.
The Old Stamp House – housed in the former offices of Lakes poet William Wordsworth, who was Westmorland’s distributor of stamps for a time – beat world-famous restaurants such as La Maison d’à Côté in Montlivault in France and Ise Sueyoshi in Tokyo to its accolade in the TripAdvisor Travellers Choice 2021 awards.
‘My first reaction was disbelief when I saw we were ranked No1 in the world,’ Mr Blackburn said. ‘It’s a great boost for the whole team. You see a lot of criticism of TripAdvisor, but I’ve found it a good source of feedback as we’ve worked to improve.’
However, when it comes to local bragging rights, Mr Blackburn accepts there can only be one winner.
‘My dad said, “How can you be the best restaurant in the world when you’re not even the best restaurant in Ambleside?”’ he laughed. I’ve never been to Fresher’s Café, but what they’re doing must be phenomenal!’
For his part, Fresher’s Café owner Jacob Williams said achieving the No1 TripAdvisor customer review ranking out of Ambleside’s 65 restaurants and cafés had never been his objective.
‘When we opened in 2017, the first six months were so quiet I didn’t think we were going to survive,’ he said.
‘Eventually things picked up, but even getting into the top 20 on TripAdvisor was something I thought was out of reach.
‘We’ve just concentrated on serving simple, home-cooked food in a friendly, unpretentious atmosphere, and people have been really kind.’
Mr Williams, 28, manages the café with his mother, Liesel, while his 88-year-old grandmother Doris Almond bakes all the cakes – sometimes as many as seven a day.
‘I’ve never been to the Old Stamp House, but I wish them every success,’ he added.
‘They’re obviously very good at what they do, and it’s brilliant for Ambleside.’
‘My first reaction was disbelief’